Hegseth ousts top US Army commander in Europe as Pentagon purge widens
Gen. Chris Donahue, commander of US Army Europe and Africa and head of NATO’s Allied Land Command, is relinquishing command after a little over a year in the role, having lost the confidence of Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth. He is set to hand over the post on July 2.
The departure is part of a sustained turnover in the Pentagon’s top ranks under Hegseth, who has removed or sidelined numerous senior officers, including the Army’s former chief of staff, Gen. Randy George. Donahue’s command is also slated to be downgraded from a four-star to a three-star billet, consistent with the administration’s stated goal of reducing the overall number of generals.
The move lands with particular weight in Europe, where Donahue oversaw the US Army’s posture toward Russia and Ukraine and was regarded as a steady hand by allied counterparts. Republican lawmakers are divided over the reshuffle, with some defending the right of a defense secretary to choose his commanders and others uneasy about losing experienced leadership at a time of continued tension on NATO’s eastern flank.